Articles Posted inForm 1 – 5320.1 Manufacture

We are often asked if you have to be 21 to build an SBR or Suppressor. If you are manufacturing a firearm under the NFA using an ATF Form 5320.1 you only need to be 18 under federal law. Likewise, if you are purchasing a firearm using an ATF Form 4 from an individual, trust, or non FFL you only need to be 18 years old. If you are buying one from an FFL, you must be 21 years old under federal law. Your state may impose stricter requirements.

Below is an excerpt from the attached letter from ATF explaining the age requirement.

This is in response to your letter of November 16, 2006, to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) advising that you are 18 years of age, the owner of a AR-15 type receiver, and wish to register it has a short-barreled rifle using an ATF 1 application.You ask whether ATF would approve the application submitted under these circumstances.

While this may seem obvious, we regularly get asked this question. YES, when using the ATF eFiling for a Fom1, a signed copy of your gun trust must be uploaded. The maximum file size that can be attached is 3MB but you can upload multiple files if necessary. We recommend scanning your gun trust at 200 DPI in black and white or grayscale to keep the file size small. If you find that the file size is still over 3MB, you can separate the documents into several parts which can each be uploaded. In addition to the trust document, you must also submit all amendments which have been executed at the time of the filing, any schedules mentioned in the document like Shedule A, Sechedule B, lists of beneficiaries, list of co-trustees, and in most cases a Schedule A or Assignment sheet showing the trust has been funded is also required.

A word of caution about Gun Trusts that use a Schedule A to list firearms.

If your gun trust uses Schedules like a Schedule A to list the firearms, it may not be wise to include your non NFA firearms in the trust as you will end up sending the ATF a list of all of your firearms. Gun trusts that use assignment sheets are generally preferable to others because of the ability to maintain the privacy over your non NFA firearms.

We are all familiar with the inconsistency of the ATF. The ATF has changed their position on the Sib Brace (SB-15) with a pistol. While the ATF, still states that it is legal to use the SB-15 as intended (strapped to your wrist), they have reversed their position on using the SB-15 when shouldered.

You may remember that earlier this year, ATF stated that since the SB-15 is not intended to be fired from the shoulder, the misuse of an individual would not change the classification of the firearm. See the March ATF SB-15 letter

We believe that this is the correct decision and interpretation. The problem is that someone else recently asked the same question and got a very different answer. ATF has now stated that the misuse of the SB-15 (being fired from the shoulder) does create an SBR and make the pistol subject to the NFA.

This is another one of those issues where the answer is not can you do but what should you do. Technically, you do not have to have a copy of your Form 1 or Form 4 for anyone other than the Attorney General, the ATF or an agent or investigator upon request.

Some recent case law has stated that a police officer is not an investigator or agent or the ATF and as such has no right to request to see your ATF form. I cannot believe the amount of money and or the risk that the individual took when a copy of the document on your cell phone or in your gun bag would have avoided the issue. In addition, there is nothing to state that a judge in your state or where you are asked for the paperwork would rule the same way.

The NFA requires that a person possessing a firearm registered in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record (NFRTR) retains proof of registration which must be made available to the Attorney General, specifically an ATF agent or investigator, upon request.

ATF is pleased to announce the availability of revised ATF Form 1, Application to Make and Register a Firearm, and ATF Form 5, Application for Tax Exempt Transfer and Registration of Firearm.

The ATF Form 1 has been revised to allow the payment of the making tax by use of a credit or debit card. This is a new option that was requested by the industry. Payment by check or money order will still be allowed when the application is submitted on paper.

The Form 1 and Form 5 have been revised to incorporate the questions relating to non-immigrant status that are contained in ATF Form 5330.20, Certification of Compliance with 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(5)(B). Form 5330.20 is to be submitted when the applicant maker is an individual, not a legal entity. With a submission of the revised Form 1, the submission of Form 5330.20 will not be required. This revision was also requested by the industry.

I recently published an article on Gun Trusts and an amazing 1 day approval. I felt that this was an unusual circumstance and decided to submit an electronic ATF Form 1 back on July 26th using my personal Gun Trust to test out the current time for approvals on using a Trust from a Gun Trust Lawyer®.

While I was not surprised to have not received an approval on July 27th, I have been checking the status regularly. I was surprised to receive an approval early Saturday morning August 2, 2014. This approval was not anywhere as quick as our clients 1 day approval, but only took 35 days to get approved which is amazing considering that many are reporting 9-14 months for a paper approvals. Not only was the approval quick, but the email notification came with an attachment which contained a copy of my Form 1. The process for printing the approval was more complex than it needed to be and I guess that the ATF decided they could cut down on the amount of communication and support by just sending a copy. A wise move by the ATF.

Please let us know about your approval times so we can see if others are experiencing similar results.

Recently, I had an electronic version of a Form 1 approved by the ATF for my Gun Trust and wanted to clarify what is required for engraving.

ATF 5300.4

In 27 CFR 479.102 (page 92) describes what is necessary to engrave on a SBR or SBS when one is manufacturing. This is not necessary if you purchase one that is already manufactured as it will have been done for you.

Based on the ATF letter requiring NICS checks for Trusts, the ATF may have accidentally opened the registry for new Machine Guns when registered in the name of a trust which is not a person under the GCA.

The Prince Law Blog quotes the same letter I wrote about a few days ago where the ATF determined that “Unlike individuals, corporations, partnerships, and associations; unincorporated trusts do not fall within the definition of “person” in the GCA.” And therefore, as a result,

Because unincorporated trusts are not “persons” under the GCA, a Federal firearms licensee (FFL) cannot transfer firearms to them without complying with the GCA. Thus, when an FFL transfers an NFA firearm to a trustee or other person acting on behalf of a trust, the transfer is made to this person as an individual (i.e., not as a trust). As the trustee or other person acting on behalf of the trust is not the approved transferee under the NFA, 18 U.S.C. 5812, the trustee or other person acting on behalf of a trust must undergo a NICS check. The individual must also be a resident of the same State as the FFL when receiving the firearm.

Satellite office with limited services and hours. Call for an appointment.

*The hiring of a lawyer is an important decision that should not be based solely upon advertisements. Before you decide, ask us to send you free written information about our qualifications and experience. The information on this website is not intended to establish an attorney-client relationship, are not confidential, and are not intended to constitute legal advice. Proper legal advice can only be given by an attorney who agrees to represent you, who reviews the facts of your specific case, who does not have a conflict of interest preventing the representation, and who is licensed as an attorney in the state where the law applies. Some states require additional disclosures which may consider the information on this website to be consider advertising and others states require that this page state ATTORNEY ADVERTISING or THIS IS AN ADVERTISEMENT.